"Everyone gets crossed once in a while," Declan said for what must've been the twentieth time in the morning. Which was impressive considering it was only 7:30 AM.

"But you saw the promo video! Mine was shown near the end," Derrick whined.

Declan rolled his eyes. "In a ten second clip within a three minute video. Other people - who no offense - are more popular than you, had the same fate."

Declan had a point. The Preston Camp promo video had amassed 50k views on YouTube in just one night, a testament to its fame in the basketball community. Derrick's defense, or rather, his attempt at defense on Elijah had made an appearance near the end where clips had been smushed together of the best moments from the 1v1 drill.

In a drill that contained such talent, people getting crossed had happened a few times and most if not all were more popular than Derrick. Still...

"But think of the folks back home! They'll definitely recognize me."

Declan shrugged. "Remember what Coach Presley always said about getting crossed?" Derrick repeated the mantra with Declan. "You can only get crossed if you're trying on defense, so it's nothing to be ashamed of."

Derrick sighed. He missed Coach Presley. Coach Presley was his and Declan's coach back in Illinois and he was a big reason Derrick had developed such a good sense of the game. The man was like a built-in basketball Wikipedia.

"I hope the coach I get is like Presley," Derrick said.

"Won't matter from what I heard." Derrick raised a questioning eyebrow and Declan continued. "Guy I know that attended the camp before said the coaches are instructed not to take control too much. They still call basic plays and give advice, of course, but they give the teams a lot of freedom for some reason."

"Probably so the leadership of certain players can be seen by scouts and college coaches," Derrick deduced. "Some coaches value that trait more than skill."

"Oh, that makes sense," Declan said with a thoughtful expression. "I hope I'm paired with people that have that trait then. That doesn't sound like me."

"You also don't have your head up your ass, though. You listen and don't let your ego get in the way. I'm sure coaches will also notice that too."

Declan grinned. "And you'll be that leader figure making sure everyone plays their role properly on the court."

"I'm not sure these guys will be eager to listen to a three-star," Derrick said, scratching his head. He loved the thinking part of the game but he imagined he would be coming off the bench and not given enough respect for his voice to be heard.

"You'll figure something out," Declan said with such certainty that Derrick almost chose to believe him.

"Anyway," Derrick said, throwing a pillow from his bed at Declan's who sat in his boxers on his own. "Hurry up and get dressed! I don't know what time the bus allows boarding at and I want to get a window seat!"

Declan grumbled but obeyed, getting up and going into their shared bathroom. The Preston Camp was sponsored by many companies, one of which was Marriot. As such, the players were stationed at hotels not too far from the arena with transportation buses provided. By some measure of fate, Derrick and Declan had been able to sign up as roommates yesterday.

Derrick found the transportation bus system to be interesting. It was available every hour from 7 and stopped at noon. Then, it started again at 3 pm and ended at 7, with a two hour period before the last 9 PM transport. Of course, players already at the arena were able to catch it back to the hotel when it arrived there. What made it interesting was the first morning games were scheduled to start at nine and the first evening games at four. This meant players had a lot of freedom on how to spend their days and Derrick wondered if coaches would be monitoring the players who spent extra time in the arena, studying other teams, and getting extra shots up when the games were finished for the day.

Regardless, Derrick knew he would be guilty of both. Analyzing teams and players' strengths and weaknesses had always been his thing.

Thankfully, Declan didn't take that long to get ready and the pair were on their way out of the lobby at 7:45. Derrick was surprised to see some reporters recording when they exited the hotel, but his low rating worked in his favor as they ignored him in favor of annoying those around him.

Declan wasn't as lucky.

Sure enough, the bus allowed boarding before the designated time, and the bus, despite its respectable size, was almost full when Derrick and Declan boarded.

Derrick figured this was because it was the first day and the players had been informed news of their teammates would be waiting for them at the arena. He expected the numbers for the early bus rides would significantly dwindle starting tomorrow.

As Derrick passed players to go deeper in the bus he never felt so invisible. He even passed Elijah at the end of a row and despite their eyes meeting, the boy said nothing and went back to his animated conversation.

That was probably for the best.

The ride to the arena was eventful but peaceful. Derrick took his headphones out of his bag and put on the sound of soothing guitars. Unlike the usual basketball players who chose their pregame music as rap for the most part, Derrick liked to listen to the sounds of some calming instrument. People laughed when he told them but it helped to calm him down.

They arrived at the gym in about twenty minutes. While listening to music, Derrick had been running through scenarios where his teams didn't turn out to be ego-filled airheads and he actually got a shot at winning the tournament.

Winning camp MVP was definitely fun to daydream about but it was time he took on a more realistic goal. Being a contributor to the team that ended up winning it all was a slightly more realistic one.

This time there wasn't a herd of reporters waiting and the players were able to disembark and head inside smoothly. The players as a collective made a beeline for the bulletin board on the far side of the gym which held on it the teammates they would be going to battle with for the next month.

Derrick's eyes widened as they flew over the information. Players' names were shown under a coach's name and the team name the coach had come up with, along with the star rating next to each player's name. The first sign of trouble was two 5 stars being on the same team.

That sure didn't sound like fun, Derrick thought, as he continued skimming through the teams for his name. Finally, under the team named Court Kings and coached by Alex Dyers, Derrick found his name.

The problem?

The Court Kings happened to be the only team without a 5-star rated player. Even worse, Derrick wasn't the only 3-star rated player to represent the team. Laine Williams was another 3-star rated player, whom even Derrick hadn't heard of, which was certainly not a good sign.

Derrick wasn't a firm believer in luck, but as he stared at the sheet of paper, he wondered if it was a representation of bad luck.

"Aww, we're not on the same team," Declan commented.

Derrick found his name under a team labeled Hoop Dreams. His team was much more balanced, considering Derrick recognized every name there, including the top-five ranked Aaron Mayers. Just thinking of playing against a duo of the paint dominant Aaron and a shooter of Declan's level sent a shiver down his spine.

"I don't think you should be feeling any sort of regrets with a team like that," Derrick said.

Declan looked over the list of his members thoughtfully. "Are they really that good? I only know of Aaron."

Derrick scoffed. Back home, he played the role of a scout since most of the players on his team didn't watch much basketball in favor of watching college and the NBA. Derrick watched all three levels routinely.

To Derrick, watching multiple levels helped you to appreciate the difference and understand what other players may be doing wrong, and thus, help to improve your own skills.

"They are damn good," Derrick finally replied.

Declan shrugged as if to say he'd take his word for it. "What about you? You happy with your team?"

Derrick shot him a skeptical look. Declan took a look for himself and smirked when he saw the lineup. "This looks like a great opportunity for you to show off your ability."

Derrick frowned, although he made a good point. "I want to win."

"And why can't you?"

The question seemed so simple, which was a lot like Declan's mindset. Yet once again, he made a good point.

Why couldn't he?

Because of some ratings, some scouts had come up with? Because the best players in the camp weren't on his team? There was much more that went into winning a basketball game, much less a tournament, than star power and Declan's question reiterated that in four simple words.

"Sometimes I wonder if you're a genius," Derrick said.

Declan smirked. "Better stop wondering, then."

The two parted ways after their usual handshake routine. The gathering of players had gotten loud as everyone reacted to the teams they had ended up on. Most seemed happy, which wasn't surprising considering with this amount of talent having a bad team was near impossible, and was one of the reasons the camp produced such competitive matches with high-octane action.

Coaches were lined up in front of the player stands and Derrick recognized Alex from the coach introductions yesterday. He was easily the youngest coach of the selection and considering how fit he looked, he more resembled a college player than a coach. The full tracksuit he wore added to his youthful look.

He was also one of the only African American coaches, which made Derrick think he might connect with him more.

On his way to Alex's section, Derrick heard the loud plea of someone who was not very happy with his team selection.

"There's absolutely no way having two three stars on a team with no five stars is fair!" A voice hollered from behind him. Derrick turned to see a boy he recognized from YouTube clips. He had gone viral for his big mouth and tendency to rile up players. In fact, he had been on one of the most viral poster clips of the winter.

Just not on the right side of it.

The boy was named Oscar Lambert and had a face that seemed permanently twisted into a scowl. Despite being known primarily for his big mouth, he hadn't lucked onto his four-star rating. Oscar was freakishly athletic at 6'5 and used it to defend at an undeniably elite standard. His offense was a bit rough, but on the back of his athleticism, he could be a good slasher at times.

Derrick tuned out his whining as he reached Alex. Alex himself seemed to be focused on Oscar's tantrum as the Court Kings assembled around him for the first time. Derrick took note of the players he recognized with child-like glee.

There was four star Kyle Andrews, nicknamed the cold-blooded Andrews after a game-winner in the state championship where he hadn't even reacted after the ridiculous three, only looking at the camera with a bored expression. Derrick had researched his highlights after seeing that and realized the guy was insanely clutch and never seemed too up or down.

Next, and no doubt the best player that would represent the team was Leo Wilkes. Ranked four-star, Leo was a 6'10 center that was only missing a three-point jumpshot in his game. He played an old-school style in the post and dominated on the boards and was a defensive force in the paint. He was already being scouted by the big colleges such as Duke, Kentucky, and the like.

"Do you have something to say," Alex asked finally, still looking at Oscar who had quieted as he joined the team.

The coach seemed to think Oscar wasn't the type to voice his concerns in front of the team.

He was very wrong.

"It just don't seem fair that we are the only team with no five star and two three stars," Oscar said in a voice that Derrick deemed annoying.

Alex looked at the six other gathered players. "Do you folks agree?" He had an accent with a country twang to it.

"I think that's irrelevant," Cold-blooded Andrews said, his face devoid of emotion. "The point of the camp is to showcase your game to the many scouts and hopefully improve. What some ratings say have nothing to do with that."

Oscar scowled, or maybe he was looking at him with his normal expression. Derrick could hardly tell if the boy's lip ever didn't curl up aggressively. "The point is to win," Oscar responded with venom, "if you can't see that I don't know how we're going to move forward."

Andrews shrugged, unperturbed by Oscar's aggression. "If you're so good to look down on a player because of what a couple scouts rated him, I don't see how you'll have a problem with winning if you try hard enough."

Derrick immediately liked the guy.

"I agree that a couple of low-rated players doesn't automatically mean we will lose," Leo Wilkes announced before Oscar could open his mouth. His voice was ridiculously deep and carried the tone of being expected to be heard and listened to. "However, I've found a bigger issue." He paused and everyone waited for him to continue. "Raise your hand if you're a point guard."

Derrick had been content to stay out of the squabbling so being almost directly addressed jumped him. He raised a tentative hand and was surprised to see none of the other six players follow suit.

The fact that a team was only made up of seven players had been a cause of concern for some people, but Mr. Preston wanted nobody riding the bench the entire game. As such, players with good endurance and versatile subs who could play multiple positions were a big factor in winning. Derrick's father had been worried about health concerns and Derrick had been worried about whether an injury would mean a team having to finish the tournament with six players, but thankfully, that was not the case.

Mr. Preston had players who had narrowly missed an invite on standby, ready to replace any players who were unfit to continue. This also meant players who couldn't handle the grind of the tournament could drop out of their own free-will, though they would certainly be viewed as a quitter in the eyes of the other players, and most importantly, the scouts and college coaches.

Leo Wilkes sighed. "We only have one, as you can see."

Oscar folded his arms. "I'm sure someone can switch to point guard too. Heck, I could do it."

From the footage Derrick had seen, Oscar lacked so many needed skills of a point guard, or any guard for that matter, that Derrick had to bite his lip to stop a laugh from escaping. Alex seemed to catch his reaction and Derrick swore he saw amusement flash across his eyes.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Derrick said carefully. "You guys have been playing your position for your entire basketball career probably. Having to adjust now against this level of players probably won't be pretty."

Oscar looked at him like he'd just seen a fly form sentences but Leo nodded his agreement. The other players seemed content not to intervene.

"Are you suggesting you play as our starting point guard?" Oscar asked, his brow furrowed.

Derrick eyed their coach. He was clearly letting them work it out themselves purposely, as all coaches had been instructed to do if Declan's information had been right. However, Derrick could tell it would be hard to come to a productive conclusion with a type like Oscar without the coach stamping his own perspective.

"What do you think, Coach?" Derrick asked.

Alex smiled and nodded to himself. "I think that the point guard will play a vital role on a team like this. Not only is Derrick the only point guard, but he's also the only pass-first player here from what I've seen." He glanced at Oscar. "And he's also a quite capable pass-first player who led his state in assists per game. I'd say giving it a shot would do more good than harm."

"Sounds good enough to me," Kyle Andrews said.

"You better not make us lose," Oscar said with an annoyed glance in Derrick's direction.

Derrick nodded. "Didn't plan to."

"Now that that's settled," Alex said, clapping his hands together and taking on a more authoritative tone. "I assume none of you have taken a look at the schedule, yet?"

The makeshift team collectively shook their heads.

"Well," Alex chuckled, "the first games are set to begin in just an hour from now."

Derrick groaned.

Don't tell me...

"And the Court Kings are among those first two games," Alex finished.

Derrick sighed, shaking his head in disbelief. The team hadn't even managed to get on the same page off the court and they were to be expected to do so on the court in just sixty minutes.

A representation of bad luck indeed.

Chapter Two

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